


Naps are for losers

by brina452



Series: The Adventures of Baby Noct and Umbra [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-31
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-11 18:41:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13530270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brina452/pseuds/brina452
Summary: In which a four-year-old Noctis favors play time over nap time and thinks certain people need more fun in their lives. He and Umbra have just the plan to fix that.





	Naps are for losers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Noctislucent (Baekhanded)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baekhanded/gifts).



> My name's been on this little series from the beginning and _finally_ I get around to contributing to it! I honestly didn't expect this to come out to 4k but ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ Enjoy!

Noctis was reaching the age where he didn’t need many naps throughout the day. As of late, he’s been down to one a day; usually at noon, about an hour after his lunch. Yet, Aulea began noticing that even those ones were getting harder to put him down for. Noctis was too restless. Too full of energy and wonder to surrender to sleep. With such a huge world and Citadel around to explore, what child wouldn’t be?

“Nap time,” she would say when she carried Noctis to his room.

“Play time,” Noctis would always argue with a pout.

When Noctis went down for naps, Umbra went down with him or stayed nearby. Though Aulea became suspicious when Noctis started escaping from his crib. There was always a pillow or two conveniently placed on the floor, as if _someone_ put it there for Noctis’ safety. Regis used to assure her that there was no harm to it and she agreed. Despite the fact her son was a daring little rebel, at least Umbra made sure he didn’t hurt himself mid jailbreak.

In fact, Umbra’s tendency to stay close to Noct eased her nerves almost as much as it warmed her heart. It didn’t matter how often she found them both either a complete mess or _about_ to cause a complete mess. Not once did they ever turn up harmed, save for some scuffed knees from time to time. No matter the adventure or mischief her dear son chose to embark, he would never embark it alone. For that, she was glad.

Today Noctis is more tired than he normally is after lunch. No doubt thanks to how much he and Umbra were running around earlier. Apparently so much that even Cor couldn’t keep up with them. It’s a relief for Aulea because for once Noctis isn’t fussing in her arms to protest nap time. For once she’s not reminded of how fast he’s growing up.

“Mama?” he asks with his face sleepily buried into her neck. “Where’s Umbra?”

Aulea chuckles and looks down where Umbra patters alongside her. The pup looks up to her panting and happy. He barks to announce himself.

“He’s here, little love. He hasn’t left your side since the morning.”

“His fur is really soft, Mama. And fluffy. He’s my favorite pillow.”

“Is that right? Well you’ll be having an extra cozy nap today, won’t you?”

“Uh-huh. You should nap with us.”

Aulea smiles as she approaches the door to Noctis’ room and gently pushes it open. The offer is quite tempting. Much more appealing than listening to the Council bicker amongst each other for the next hour. Alas, Regis did mention that the matters of this meeting were important. No way could Aulea leave him to bear such a headache alone.

She sighs as she approaches the bed. Umbra immediately jumps onto it, respectfully ignoring his special doggy bed at the foot of it. He wags his tail while Aulea is careful in setting Noctis down. She crouches to his level and brushes a thumb against his cheek.

“Oh Noct, I’m afraid we’ll have to wait till next time. Your father and I have some very important things to discuss with the Council. Should I keep them waiting any longer, they might have a fit.”

A pout tugs at the corners of Noct’s mouth, and for a moment Aulea fears he may burst into a fit of his own.

“The Council stinks, Mama.”

The comment gets another laugh out of her, which in turn gets Noctis to smile. Umbra comes by to sit at his side and paw at her hand. Aulea reaches to scratch his ears.

“It can be tiresome, yes, but a Queen cannot abandon her responsibilities. Let alone leave her dear King to bear all the work himself.”

“Will Daddy go crazy if you’re not there?”

“Oh, most definitely! We wouldn’t want that now, would we?”

Noctis quickly shakes his head, hand clutching into Umbra’s fur. “You gotta save him, Mama! You gotta!”

“I will, little love, I promise! First I need to make sure you’re all tucked in here.”

“C’mon Umbra!” Noctis gasps, pulling his little legs up on the bed. Umbra rushes off to the side so Noct can pull away the covers and crawl under them. Once he’s settled, Umbra sinks back against him, resting his chin on the boy’s chest.

Aulea smiles and combs her fingers through Noct’s hair. “Comfortable, are we?”

“Uh-huh.” He nods.

“And you, Umbra?”

Umbra yips at her in response, tail wagging when she pats his head.

“Right then. I should be gone no more than an hour. Rest well, my darlings.”

She leans over to kiss them both before she stands. One hour, Aulea reminds herself as she heads back to the door. One hour the two of them should sleep through. She glances over her shoulder to see Noctis wrapping his arms around Umbra. He snuggles the pup closer and nuzzles into his fur, making Aulea’s smile widen. She’ll have someone sent in to check in on them soon.

In the meantime, it was off to help Regis maintain his sanity.

***

Years from now, the teenage version of Noctis will be cursing his four-year-old self for easily rejecting nap time. It’s the thirty-minute mark when he starts rousing from sleep. He sits up, waking Umbra at the movement and rubs at his eyes. The pup lifts his head when Noct climbs out from under the covers and looks around the room.

“Mama?” He calls out curiously.

She said she’d be gone for only an hour, didn’t she? As far as Noctis believes, he slept for _ages_! That means it’s play time! Whenever he argues with her, she always told him play time can come after nap time. She’s usually just walking in when he wakes up or she’s the one to wake him up in the first place.

Suspicious, if you ask Noct.

“What do you think, Umbra?” he asks. Umbra lowers his head, resting it between his paws with a whine. Noctis nods at him and pouts. “Stupid Council. It’s play time… I want Mama and Daddy!”

And _how dare_ the Council keep them from him. They did that a lot, always under the claim it was “important”. Yet, the more Noctis thinks about it, what could possibly be more important than play time? It doesn’t make any sense and Noctis won’t stand for it anymore!

It’s up to him and Umbra to save his parents from what he imagines is nothing but torturous boredom.

Noctis is the master at making people smile and laugh, after all, especially with Umbra at his side. The two have done their fair share of interrupting meetings since Noct learned how to walk. Not once did they fail to get laughs and smiles from everyone in the room. The thought sparks an idea in Noctis’ little brain when he remembers it.

Not only would they save his parents from boredom—they’d save _everyone_.

Noctis slides off his bed and turns around to face his pup. “Wanna play, Umbra?”

Umbra’s ears perk up as he lifts his head. He paws the air in front of him with a bark while Noctis reaches to catch his paw. Umbra never says no to play time. Somehow, the Messenger can already sense the mischief his boy is planning to dive into. It’s all in that smile that gets Umbra to start wagging his tail.

“Okay, but we have to be _very sneaky_ ,” he whispers. Umbra stands up and licks Noct’s cheek to convey that he understands. “We’re gonna bring fun to everyone. It’s gotta be a surprise! Come on!”

Umbra hops off the bed and barks again, rushing to door to nose at Noctis’ shoes on the floor. It was time for an adventure.

***

Noctis still doesn’t understand _how_ Umbra can turn invisible, but he’s aware the pup is much better at it than he used to be. He never disappears at random because of a bark or sneeze anymore. Whenever Umbra disappears now, it’s out of his own will. It’s why he’s the reigning champion of hide and seek. It’s why Noctis can get extra desserts after dinner sometimes.

It’s why Umbra is the perfect look out for this sneakier adventure. Their system to navigate the halls is simple: Noctis stays hidden in corners, behind pillars, plants or statues. Meanwhile, Umbra uses his invisibility powers to scout ahead and make sure their route’s clear. If it isn’t, Umbra finds his own ways to make it clear.

Noctis sits patiently behind on of the big plants outside his room, clutching a toy bucket to his chest. When he hears the clicking of Umbra’s nails, he sits up a little straighter, eyes widening in excitement. When the pup appears in front of him, panting happily, he stands up.

“All clear?”

Umbra plucks the red bucket from his boy’s hands with his teeth and then scampers back down the hallway. Noct follows right behind. Off to the gardens they go.

***

Cor expected to go about his day normally. He expected to review several reconnaissance reports in peace. He expected to have a productive meeting with Drautos afterwards. Then, sometime later, he was expecting to train some new recruits without breaking a sweat.

What Cor doesn’t expect is to run into a female attendant on the verge of panic through the halls of the Citadel. In hindsight, he supposes he should’ve known before she even sputtered on into an explanation. Alas, it didn’t make sense until he hears the words “P- Prince Noctis isn’t sleeping in his room like Queen Aulea said he would be!”

_Of course_.

Lucky for Cor, this isn’t the first time Noctis snuck out of nap time. Nor the first he’s gone on a hunt for the little royal, either. He’s not _too_ worried, but he’s hoping that his nephew didn’t teleport to a certain candy store several miles away. He tasks the female attendant with calling the establishment to be safe.

There’s no need to alert Regis and Aulea yet. Cor’s certain he’ll find Noctis and Umbra playing in one of their favorite spots. If not… well, time to add an extra tally to how many times Noctis has given Cor a minor heart attack.

***

The gardens were one of Noctis and Umbra’s favorite spots to play. Noctis loved all the flowers, chasing Umbra through lush grass, and splashing in the large fountains spread about.

He loved it even more when his parents would take him and Umbra here for a little stroll on the weekends. It was a family ritual that began when Noctis was about a year old. Something Regis refused to let royal duties take him away from unless it was a matter of life or death.

Sometimes Regis would lift Noct up to reach purple orchids from tree branches. Others, Aulea would skip with him through the sprinklers along stone paced pathways. They always spent at least an hour out together if not more. Those days were a wonderful eternity to Noctis. They were his _favorite_ days. Especially when his father would carry him on his shoulders the entire trip back to his room at the end of it all.

At this point, Noctis and Umbra know their way through the gardens backwards and forwards. They’ve played tag in almost every inch of it. They’ve crawled into every nook and bush pretending to be fierce coeurls. Best of all, they never failed to find the best mud patches, which happens to be part of the mission at hand.

The stone path under him is wet and when he bends down to pat the grass, he smiles at the dampness that cools his palm. The sprinklers must’ve turned off recently. Noct knows the perfect spot they can head to. It’s the one spot where the grass is a bit less lush, where the sprinklers are leaky, and the water tends to pool a bit too much.

Noctis and Umbra hurry down the path, shoes and paws splashing through puddles as they go. Trimmed hedges and rows of flower beds lead their way till they reach a giant orchard tree. Noctis smiles wide at the sight of it.

It’s been a while since he visited this specific area. There weren’t this many petals on the ground the last time he was here. He looks to his right to see the pair of benches his parents normally sat on. This weekend he’s definitely going to ask them to come back to this area.

For now, there’s a very important mission at hand. Noctis heads around the other side of the tree trunk, shoes almost squelching in the mud. Umbra comes to place the bucket in front of the boy when he sinks onto hid knees.

“It’s so soft,” Noctis says, pressing his hands into the mud and clawing small fingers into it with ease. “But how much do you think we’ll need, Umbra?”

Umbra only stares at the mud in silence. Noctis grabs his bucket to examine it and frowns.

“I don’t know if this will hold enough. How many people are in the Council?”

Umbra whines.

“Too many. That’s what I thought, too. Maybe if we make them here first!” Noctis sets down the bucket and grabs a chunk of mus. He flattens it in his palm till it’s round and thing, then sets it aside to start another. This time he uses both hands to pile mud together and carefully form it till it looks like a miniature cake.

When he’s done, he takes his creations in his palms and holds them up in front of Umbra.

“Mud pie or mud cookies?”

Umbra paws at the hand that holds the cookie, leaving a small print in it.

“You’re right! We can fit way more cookies in the bucket! Good thinking, Umbra!”

Umbra barks and starts digging into the mud, leaving the perfect pile up behind him for Noctis to get into. The boy giggles and plunges his hands deep into the mud. He’s made both mud pie and cookies for his parents before and they always _loved them_. The Council would love them too. He’s sure of it.

***

He lost track of how many cookies he’s made so far, but the bucket was almost full. These cookies were extra special, too. Each had Umbra’s paw print in them as well as a single orchid petal resting on top of them. They were Noctis’ best creations yet and he couldn’t wait to share them with everyone.

“Your Highness?”

The voice startles him at first, though he’s sure he recognizes it. Noctis stands up to peek from behind the tree while Umbra barks at the man approaching.

“Uncle Cor!” he quickly steps into sight with a big smile.

_Perfect,_ Noct thinks. If there’s anyone who can help him and Umbra, it’s Uncle Cor. He’s _so strong_ and could no doubt help him carry more cookies to the Council! He waves at him with a delighted laugh as he bounces on the muddy heels of his shoes. By the time Cor reaches him and kneels to his level, Noctis can see him exhaling in relief.

“What are you doing here, Uncle Cor?”

He doesn’t answer right away. Instead he’s looking Noctis and Umbra over, probably taking note of their muddy state. It brings Noctis to look down at himself. There’s smears all over his clothes from how many times he wiped his hands on them. Yet, his hands are still dirty, and his legs are a mess down to his shoes.

Umbra’s the cleanest of them both with nothing but his paws caked in mud. Still, with the two of them combined, they’re an absolute mess.

“Looking for you, your Highness.” Cor pokes Noctis in the stomach. “Aren’t you supposed to be taking a nap?”

“I already napped!” Noctis pouts. “When I woke up, Mama wasn’t there. Her and Daddy are stuck with Council! You gotta help me save them!”

“Your High—Noctis, your parents are in a very important meeting that should be over soon. Let’s take you back to get cleaned up so you can wait for them.”

As if Noctis hasn’t already waited enough! The boy frowns. Maybe Cor had one too many “important meetings” and got _brainwashed_ by them.

“But meetings are boring. It’s play time.”

Cor sighs but maintains his resolve. “If I play with you, will you come back to get cleaned up?”

“Will you help me bring the cookies to everyone?”

Cor blinks, confused at the statement until Umbra produces the cookies in question. He holds the bucket up with his teeth and brushes it against Cor’s leg.

“Why… don’t we wait until the meeting’s over to give them out?”

The suggestion is all the proof Noctis needs to confirm that Uncle Cor’s lost to him. No matter. He’s just another unfortunate soul that needs saving like the others. Noctis knows exactly what to do. He looks to Umbra and the pup tilts his head, bucket still in his mouth.

“Will you still play?” Noctis asks, folding his hands in front of him and twisting the toe of one of his shoes in the dirt.

Noctis knows his blinking, curious stare will be impossible for his uncle to resist. What he doesn’t know is that those big, blinking blue eyes may as well be the bane of Cor’s existence. And it’s Aulea’s fault, damnit, because those are _her eyes_ appearing so innocent before him. Cor’s seen that exact look before. His immediate instinct is to surrender himself to all Noctis’ wishes.

Umbra makes it worse. He’s small, fluffy, and staring at Cor intently as he wags his tail. Who decided it was a good idea to let these two become inseparable, anyway? Gods help him.

“Of course I will.” Cor dares to let his mouth twitch into something almost resembling a smile.

It’s worth Noctis bouncing on the back of his heels again, shutting his eyes with a toothy grin and a giggle. If Cor didn’t know any better, he’d say that giggle was a bit—

“Then catch me if you can!”

— _mischevious_.

It takes Cor a second after Noctis bolts to realize what happened. The boy’s fast. Too fast for his liking. By the time he looks over his shoulder, Noctis is already halfway down the garden path shouting “Go, Umbra!”

Noctis is fast, but Umbra’s faster. Six, does that dog _book it_ with that little bucket still in his mouth.

Goddamnit.

“Noctis!” Cor scrambles to his feet to chase after them. “ _Prince Noctis_!”

His stern shouts do nothing to deter the little royal from his set path. Cor’s certain the path is to the Council chambers. Maybe luck would be on his side today. Maybe the meeting would happen to be coming to an end once he got there. Not that Noctis hasn’t interrupted meetings before, but most of those were alleged accidents.

“Keep going, Umbra!”

When they make it back to the Citadel, the Prince and his pup evade every maid, guard and attendant Cor shouts to for help. It’s like no one seems to know which of the two to gun for. Their hesitation gives Noctis a chance to skid between their legs while Umbra circles around them as a distraction. Cor curses under his breath because, _by the Six_ , how do they not know that it doesn’t matter which one you grab? If you catch one, there’s no way the other will leave them behind.

Of all the things Cor’s faced, he never thought he’d meet his match in a four-year-old and a puppy.

***

The day isn’t even half over and already Regis looks exhausted. Aulea noticed it at lunch earlier, as well. Though, it wasn’t enough to stop Regis from regaling Noctis with a dramatic retelling of past adventures. Aulea bites back a smile at the memory.

While her husbands makes his closing remarks, Aulea gives his hand a tight squeeze under the table. The crown weighs a little heavier on him today. She can see it in the aged lines on his forehead and at the corners of his eyes. Astrals know that Regis, of all people, could use more rest. Shame to think she had to decline Noctis’ offer of a nap earlier.

Speaking of Noctis…

“Dismissed.”

The word pulls Aulea from her thoughts while the Council begins talking amongst themselves. Everyone is slow to stand, and she can see Regis’ shoulders beginning to relax. She sighs and looks down into her lap.

“Is everything alright, Aulea?” Regis asks, returning the gentle squeeze from earlier.

“Fine, my love.” She smiles. “It’s just that I sent one of the attendants to check in on Noctis and she hasn’t returned yet.”

Regis chuckles and clasps his other hand over hers. “I imagine that means she found him causing trouble and has yet to get him to settle down.”

“It’s been half an hour since, Regis.”

“It’s _Noctis_ , Aulea. No one knows how to get him to settle down quite like you do.”

“Hmm,” she smirks. “You’re not wrong. Care to join me in checking in our little troublemaker?”

Before Regis can answer, Clarus approaches and places a hand on his shoulder. It grabs his attention and Aulea’s prepared to offer a cheerful greeting until—

“ _Oh my_!” a council woman shouts.

The sharp bark that follows gives everyone a bit of a jolt.

“Umbra?!” Aulea stands from her seat to see over the long table. There, standing in front of the double doors, with a plastic bucket next to him, is the ever-loyal pup. He barks again and wags his tail at the sight of Aulea.

“Well,” Regis sounds like he’s hardly surprised, “I suppose our little troublemaker will be making an entrance any second now.”

Umbra turns back to the large, ornate door and paws eagerly at it, turning back to face everyone in the room after.

“Ah, there’s the cute.” Regis signals to the Councilman that’s closest to the door. “Open that door, would you?”

Sure enough, the laughter of an energetic four-year-old echoes from the hall as soon as the door’s opened. The man’s eyes widen as he steps off to the side.

“ _Noctis_!” A voice that sounds a lot like Cor bellows.

“What on Eos…” Aulea shares a glance with Regis.

With one last triumphant laugh, a muddy Noctis appears barreling into the room. He comes to a skidding halt, wavering in balance till he falls forward on his knees. The Council men and women gasp.

“Your Highness!” Several say as they move to help him, but Umbra’s the first to the boy’s aid. The pup noses at his arm to encourage him to get up.

Aulea moves around to the other end of the table, eyes widening when she gets a better look at the messy state of her son and Umbra.

“Noctis, what’s the meaning of this?!”

Between his heavy breaths, Noctis pushes himself back onto his feet and smiles wide at his mother. “Mama! I missed you!”

The surrounding Council all gather closer, muffling sounds of awe and amusement under their breaths. Meanwhile, as Aulea fights her own smile and raises a questioning eyebrow to her boy, Cor enters the room. He’s huffing through his breaths loud and hard as his shoulders sag in what seems to be defeat. It gets him nothing but several surprised stares from everyone in the room.

“Cor?” Regis says from his seat at the other end of the table.

Cor huffs out another breath, meeting Regis’ eyes briefly before he clears his throat and bows. “Majesty.”

“Cor,” Aulea crosses her arms as she catches her brother’s acknowledging nod, “what is going on?”

“We’re playing, Mama!”

“I ran in to the attendant you sent.” Cor straightens himself. “Apparently _someone_ snuck off to the gardens.”

Regis stands from his seat to come over to Aulea’s side. “I assume that’s where all the mud came from.”

“Hi Daddy!”

“Hello, little troublemaker.”

“Oh Noct,” Aulea crouches down to both troublemakers. “You were supposed to be taking a nap.”

“I napped! I really did! You weren’t there, and I wanted to play. Umbra and I went to the garden to make mud cookies for everyone.”

When Umbra scoots the bucket closer to Aulea, Regis kneels and picks up one from the top to examine it closer.

“I wanted to bring them here and play. That way everyone can have fun.”

“Oh Aulea,” Regis says with an exaggerated sigh. “He just wanted everyone to have _fun_.”

She rolls her eyes. “ _Regis_.”

“What? Astrals know we could all use some fun.”

Granted, the meeting was already at an end. Noct’s well placed intentions didn’t do any harm—except to Cor, maybe, by the looks of it. It’s also not surprising that Noctis didn’t sleep for long. He was at an appropriate age to stop with naps over all. Perhaps it was time to stop forcing or expecting them of him.

The only downside to the situation is how dirty Noctis and Umbra are, but even then, that’s not anything new either.

“Did I make you upset, Mama?”

“I’m not upset, little love. Though, I’m sure the attendant I sent to check in on you was quite upset and worried when you weren’t in your room. I want you to apologize to her and promise me you’ll never go too far without Umbra or without telling anyone.”

Noctis nods slowly. “I can apologize and give her a cookie. And I promise not to go far without Umbra or without telling someone.”

“That’s my boy. Now, one last thing.” She gestures for him to come closer. When he does, she whispers in his ear. “Apologize to your uncle as well.” Because Aulea’s positive Cor did everything right, only for her boy to trick the man when he least expected.

Noctis nods once again and turns around to pluck a mud cookie from his bucket. Regis reaches over, swift to scoop his son into his arms. He stands to bring the two face to face. Noctis, with his big, sincere eyes, holds the cookie out to his uncle.

“I’m sorry I made you run, Uncle Cor.”

Even Umbra comes over to stand on his hind legs and paw at Cor’s pants with a yip. Cor glances down and back to his nephew. Regis fixes him a look, something that screams _How can you say no to this face?!_ Cor gives it another silent moment before he accepts the cookie and ruffles Noct’s hair.

“I accept your apology, Noctis.”

Noctis giggles, leaning forward to wrap his small arms around his uncle’s neck. Despite the fact there’s mud on his uniform now, Cor cracks the smallest smile and pats his nephew’s shoulder. When the surrounding Council men and women collectively awe at the sight, he frowns again. Aulea can’t help but shake her head and laugh.

“Your Highness,” one of the women speak up when Noctis pulls away from his uncle. “Since you worked so hard on them, I would be honored to take one of your cookies.”

Noctis beams and turns his head to his mother. “Can I pass out the cookies, Mama? Can I?!”

And Regis fixes her with a look this time, one pleading to _Let the boy pass out his mud cookies!_

“Oh alright, but as soon as you’re done, you and Umbra _will_ have a bath.”

***

Once the cookies are all passed out, the King and Queen walk the halls, side by side, with the little Prince and young Messenger in their arms. Noctis looks between his parents, noticing the smiles they share as they joke with each other. He looks over to his beloved pup, panting happily in his mother’s arms, and stretches to pet behind his ears.

“Mission accomplished, Umbra.”

**Author's Note:**

> Shout out to Gabby for constantly encouraging and being patient with me :) This was so fun to write! And thank YOU so much for reading! Any comments and kudos are appreciated ^.^


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